OCTOBER 1, 2014
The
Power Of Ritual
Read: 1 Corinthians 11:23-34
Do this in remembrance of Me. —1 Corinthians 11:24
When I was growing up, one of the rules in our
house was that we weren’t allowed to go to bed angry (Eph. 4:26). All our
fights and disagreements had to be resolved. The companion to that rule was
this bedtime ritual: Mom and Dad would say to my brother and me, “Good night. I
love you.” And we would respond, “Good night. I love you too.”
The value of this family ritual has recently
been impressed on me. As my mother lay in a hospice bed dying of lung cancer,
she became less and less responsive. But each night when I left her bedside I
would say, “I love you, Mom.” And though she could say little else, she would
respond, “I love you too.” Growing up I had no idea what a gift this ritual
would be to me so many years later.
Time and repetition can rob our rituals of
meaning. But some are important reminders of vital spiritual truths.
First-century believers misused the practice of the Lord’s Supper, but the
apostle Paul didn’t tell them to stop celebrating it. Instead he told them, “As
often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death
till He comes” (1 Cor. 11:26).
Rather than give up the ritual, perhaps we
need to restore the meaning.
Lord,
when we observe the Lord’s Supper, help
us avoid
the trap of letting our observance
grow
routine. May we always be moved with
gratitude
for the wonderful gift of ritual.
Any
ritual can lose meaning, but that does not make the ritual meaningless.
Insight
On the
evening Jesus celebrated His last Passover with His disciples, He also
established His own memorial supper. The unleavened Passover bread symbolized
the exodus from Egypt, and the cup echoed the Old Testament promise, “I will
redeem you.”
Source:
Our Daily Bread 2012
